The present invention relates to a plasma processing device, and a maintenance method and an installation method thereof.
Plasma processing devices are widely used during the process of manufacturing semiconductor devices in the prior art. A plasma processing device includes an upper electrode and a lower electrode facing opposite each other inside an air-tight processing chamber. During the process, high-frequency power is applied to the upper electrode to generate plasma from a processing gas induced into the processing chamber. Thus, a specific type of plasma process is implemented on a workpiece placed on the lower electrode.
An upper electrode unit at which the upper electrode is provided assumes a complex structure having a shield box in which a power supply member such as a power supply rod for supplying the high-frequency power to the upper electrode is housed, a matching box in which a matcher and the like are housed, a processing gas supply system and the like assembled as an integrated unit. Accordingly, the upper electrode unit as a whole becomes large and heavy.
This necessitates the operator to perform maintenance work such as cleaning the upper electrode and the inside of the processing chamber after disassembling the upper electrode unit into members with weights and in sizes that allow for easier handling. In addition, when the maintenance work is completed, the individual members must be reassembled into the upper electrode unit.
As described above, the device must be disassembled and reassembled each time maintenance work is performed in the prior art. This poses a problem of lowered device operating efficiency. In addition, the disassembled members must be accurately aligned during the reassembly process. Such a process is bound to be complicated and time-consuming. The shield box and the matching box are normally set at high positions that are hard for the operator to access. As a result, the operator is forced to assume an uncomfortable posture when mounting or dismounting the members. Thus, there is a problem in that a great onus is placed on the operator.
In addition, numerous piping systems and wirings such as a processing gas supply system, and an evacuating system, a cooling water circulating system and a power supply system are usually connected to the processing device. When installing such a processing device at a semiconductor manufacturing plant or the like, it is crucial to reduce the length of time required for the installation work by efficiently connecting the piping systems and the wirings. However, the pipings and the wirings are connected after delivering the device to the installation site.
The present invention has been completed by addressing the problems of the prior art discussed above. An object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved plasma processing device that addresses the problems discussed above and problems other than those discussed above and a maintenance method and an installation method thereof.
In order to achieve the object described above, in a first aspect of the present invention, a plasma processing device having a processing chamber in which a plasma process is implemented on a workpiece and an upper electrode unit constituting the upper wall of the processing chamber, which is characterized in that the upper electrode unit is capable of vacuum-locking the processing chamber by using its own weight and the difference between the pressure inside the processing chamber and the pressure outside the processing chamber without having to employ a means for locking, is provided.
According to the present invention, the upper electrode unit vacuum locks the processing chamber without utilizing a means for locking. When this structure is adopted, the processing chamber can be opened by simply removing the upper electrode unit. In addition, by placing the upper electrode unit on the processing chamber and reducing the pressure inside the processing chamber to a pressure lower than the pressure outside the processing chamber, the upper electrode unit is placed in air-tight contact with the wall of the processing chamber due to the weight of the upper electrode unit and the difference between the pressure inside the processing chamber and the pressure outside the processing chamber. As a result, a high degree of air-tightness is assured inside the processing chamber. As described above, the processing chamber can be opened and then sealed easily and quickly. Consequently, the onus on the operator is reduced and, in addition, the length of time required for performing maintenance inside the processing chamber is reduced as well.
In a second aspect of the present invention, a plasma processing device having a processing chamber in which a plasma process is implemented on a workpiece and an upper electrode unit constituting the upper wall of the processing chamber, which is characterized in that the upper electrode unit is constituted of a plurality of assemblies including, at least, one assembly capable of vacuum-locking the processing chamber by using its own weight and the difference between the pressure inside the processing chamber and the pressure outside the processing chamber without having to employ a means for locking and another assembly on which the one assembly can be placed, is provided.
According to the present invention, the upper electrode unit is constituted of a plurality of members to facilitate work performed by the operator. Thus, the heavy upper electrode unit can be disengaged in separate parts. This structure further reduces the onus placed on the operator. In addition, the one assembly is placed on the other assembly. As a result, the weight of the one assembly in addition to the difference between the pressure inside the processing chamber and the pressure outside the processing chamber allows the one assembly to be placed in air-tight contact with the other assembly. Consequently, the degree of air-tightness between the one assembly and the other assembly is improved.
It is desirable to include a first assembly having an electrode for supplying high-frequency power into the processing chamber or a grounded electrode, a second assembly that holds the first assembly and a third assembly having a high-frequency power supply path or a grounding path in the upper electrode unit. In this structure, the upper electrode unit is constituted of integrated assemblies that facilitate work performed by the operator. As a result, the upper electrode unit can be mounted and dismounted with ease and its maintenance is facilitated as well.
In addition, it is desirable to constitute the one assembly as the first assembly and the other assembly as the second assembly. This structure allows maintenance on the electrode to be performed with ease.
Under normal circumstances, the third assembly weighs more than the first assembly or the second assembly. For this reason, it is desirable to constitute the one assembly as the third assembly and the other assembly as the first assembly. When this structure is adopted, the processing chamber can be vacuum-locked with a higher degree of reliability by using the weight of the third assembly.
In a third aspect of the present invention, a plasma processing device having a processing chamber in which a plasma process is implemented on a workpiece and an upper electrode unit constituting the upper wall of the processing chamber, which is characterized in that a removing mechanism utilized to disengage the upper electrode unit from the processing chamber is provided, in that the upper electrode unit is constituted of a plurality of assemblies and in that the removing mechanism is capable of disengaging at least one assembly among the plurality of assemblies by itself and also capable of disengaging at least two assemblies among the plurality of assemblies together as an integrated member, is provided.
In this structure, an assembly that is harder for the operator to work on, for instance, can be disengaged by employing the removing mechanism. As a result, the onus placed on the operator is reduced. In addition, depending upon the type of maintenance being performed, an assembly can be disengaged by itself or a plurality of assemblies can be disengaged together as necessary. Consequently, the maintenance work can be performed with a high degree of efficiency within a short period of time.
It is desirable to allow at least one assembly to be mounted detachably at the processing chamber by employing a first locking mechanism. In this structure, by opening/closing the first locking mechanism, the one assembly can be mounted/dismounted with ease. In addition, the position of the one assembly can be determined by the first locking mechanism. As a result, the one assembly can be set in air-tight contact at the processing chamber with a high degree of reliability. Thus, a high degree of air-tightness is assured inside the processing chamber.
In addition, it is desirable to allow at least two assemblies to be detachably assembled with each other by employing a second locking mechanism. In this structure, the individual assemblies can be mounted/dismounted and their positions can be determined with ease and accuracy. Furthermore, by locking the second locking mechanism, the two assemblies can be mounted/dismounted as an integrated unit. When the second locking mechanism is released, either one of the assemblies can be mounted/dismounted by itself.
It is desirable to include a first assembly having an electrode for supplying high-frequency power into the processing chamber or a grounded electrode, a second assembly that holds the first assembly and a third assembly having a high-frequency power supply path or a grounding path in the upper electrode unit.
In a fourth aspect of the present invention, a method for performing maintenance on a plasma processing device having a processing chamber in which a plasma process is implemented on a workpiece, an upper electrode unit constituting the upper wall of the processing chamber and a removing mechanism used to disengage the upper electrode unit from the processing chamber with the upper electrode unit having at least a first assembly, a second assembly and a third assembly, which comprises a step in which the third assembly is secured to the removing mechanism and is disengaged, a step in which the first assembly is disengaged without using the removing mechanism, a step in which the third assembly and the second assembly are assembled together as an integrated unit, a step in which the third assembly coupled with the second assembly is secured to the removing mechanism and is disengaged and a step in which maintenance work is performed on at least one of; the first assembly, the second assembly, the third assembly and the processing chamber, is provided.
According to the present invention, after disengaging the large third assembly with relatively great weight which includes, for instance, a power supply path through which the high-frequency power is supplied or a grounding path with the removing mechanism, the relatively small first assembly with relatively little weight which includes, for instance, an electrode for supplying the high-frequency power into the processing chamber or a grounded electrode can be disengaged. Thus, the operator can perform maintenance on, for instance, the first assembly through a simple operation without having to disassemble the upper electrode unit into separate parts. In addition, after disengaging the first assembly, the second assembly having relatively great weight and a relatively large size that holds the first assembly, for instance, can be disengaged together with the third assembly by utilizing the removing mechanism. As a result, maintenance work can be performed inside the processing chamber, for instance, through a simple operation and the onus on the operator can be reduced. Furthermore, the reassembly process to be performed when the maintenance work is completed is facilitated.
In a fifth aspect of the present invention, a method for performing maintenance on a plasma processing device having a processing chamber in which a plasma process is implemented on a workpiece, an upper electrode unit constituting the upper wall of the processing chamber and a removing mechanism used to disengage the upper electrode unit from the processing chamber with the upper electrode unit having at least a first assembly and a second assembly, which comprises a step in which the first assembly is secured to the removing mechanism and is disengaged, a step in which the second assembly is disengaged without using the removing mechanism, a step in which maintenance work is performed on the disengaged second assembly, a step in which the second assembly having been serviced is reinstalled to the original position without using the removing mechanism and a step in which the first assembly secured to the removing mechanism is reinstalled to the original position, is provided.
According to the present invention, after the first assembly which includes, for instance, a supply path through which the high-frequency power is supplied or a grounding path is disengaged by using the removing mechanism, the second assembly that includes, for instance, an electrode for supplying the high-frequency power into the processing chamber or a grounded electrode can be disengaged. Thus, the second assembly can be serviced through a simple operation. In addition, after remounting the second assembly having undergone the maintenance process, the first assembly can be reinstalled at the original mounting position by using the removing mechanism. As a result, the onus placed on the operator after the maintenance work on the second assembly is completed is reduced.
In a sixth aspect of the present invention, a plasma processing device having a processing chamber in which a plasma process is implemented on a workpiece and a base frame on which the processing chamber is set, which is characterized in that the base frame includes a link piping having a means for switching and in hat the piping type links a pipe connected to a fluid supply source from which a fluid to be used in the processing chamber is supplied to a pipe connected to the processing chamber, is provided.
According to the present invention, the link piping is provided in the base frame. Thus, before the main device is installed, e.g., while the main device is being manufactured, the installation of the base frame and the piping work between the link piping at the base frame and the supply source can be completed. Then, the final piping process can be performed simply by connecting the link piping and the processing chamber through piping after installing the device at the base frame. As a result, the piping process is facilitated and also a reduction in the length of time required for the installation is achieved. In addition, as long as the means for switching is closed, the fluid does not leak even if the fluid is supplied to the link piping in advance prior to the installation of the main device. Consequently, the fluid can be supplied promptly after the piping becomes connected to the processing chamber. This means that the device is allowed to enter an operating state without a great delay. It is to be noted that the processing chamber as referred to in this description includes all the spaces at various devices installed on the base frame and used during the semiconductor manufacturing step during which various types of pipings become connected, including the delivery chamber of the delivery device which delivers the workpiece, as well as the processing chamber itself, in which the plasma process is implemented on the workpiece. Furthermore, the fluid as referred to in the description may be any substance distributed via a piping including a gas such as a processing gas or a liquid such as cooling water.
It is also desirable to provide a link wiring having an on/off means at the base frame, to link a wiring connected to a power source that provides power to be applied to the plasma processing device to a wiring connected to the plasma processing device. By adopting this structure, the wirings can be connected in a manner similar to that with which the pipings are connected as described above.
In a seventh aspect of the present invention, a method for installing a plasma processing device having a processing chamber in which a plasma process is implemented on a workpiece and a base frame on which the processing chamber is placed with the base frame having a link piping provided with a means for switching and the link piping used to link a pipe connected to a fluid supply source from which a fluid to be used in the processing chamber is supplied to a pipe connected to the processing chamber, which comprises a first step in which the base frame is secured onto the base on which the processing chamber is placed, a second step implementation after the first step, in which the pipe connected to the fluid supply source from which the fluid to be used in the processing chamber is supplied is connected to the link piping, a third step implemented after the second step, in which the processing chamber is secured to the base frame and a fourth step implemented after the third step, in which the pipe connected to the processing chamber is connected to the link piping, is provided.
According to the present invention, the plasma processing device having the base frame can be installed speedily over a shorter period of time.
It is even more desirable to provide a link wiring having an on/off means at the base frame to link a wiring connected to a power source that provides power to be applied to the plasma processing device to a wiring connected to the plasma processing device, implement a step in which the wiring connected to the power source that provides the power to be applied to the plasma processing device is connected to the link wiring during the third step and implement a step in which the wiring connected to the plasma processing device is connected to the link wiring during the fourth step. Through this method, the wirings can be connected through a process similar to that implemented to connect the pipings.